Nominate Now for Distinguished Space Awards

The Space Foundation annually recognizes outstanding accomplishments in three categories: space exploration; creating a positive public environment for space; and space achievement - and, for the first time, is seeking nominations from the general public.

The Space Foundation will award these honors at the 27th National Space Symposium, to be held April 11-14, 2011, at The Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, Colo. The nomination deadline is Oct. 31, 2010.

The John L. "Jack" Swigert, Jr., Award for Space Exploration
The John L. "Jack" Swigert, Jr., Award for Space Exploration honors astronaut Jack Swigert, a Colorado native who served with Jim Lovell and Fred Haise on the legendary Apollo 13 lunar mission, which was aborted en route to the Moon after the perilous rupture of an oxygen tank.

The award is given to an individual or organization for extraordinary accomplishments in the field of space exploration. To be eligible, the nominee must have either accomplished or completed the activity or completed the analysis of the activity during the 2009-2010 timeframe.

The Space Foundation, founded in 1983 in part to honor Swigert's memory, created the Swigert Award in 2004 in tribute to his lasting legacy of space exploration. Previous recipients include NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander Team, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), The California Institute of Technology, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA's Mars Exploration Team from JPL, President George W. Bush and the Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) mission team.

The award recognizes an individual or organization that has created a positive public environment for space. To be eligible, the nominee must have significantly raised public awareness and support of space endeavors, either through a specific work or event, such as a film, book, musical composition, or space mission; through lifetime achievement; or through an established venue, such as a museum or space center.

The Space Achievement Award
The Space Achievement Award is presented annually to an individual or organization for significant contributions in advancing the development or utilization of space. To be eligible, the nominee must have made a major contribution to space, such as releasing a new technology, significantly improving the performance or capabilities of an existing technology, creating new opportunities for space employment or advancement, or significantly advancing or improving space policy within the 2009-2010 timeframe.

Previous recipients include China's Shenzhou 7 Manned Space Flight Team; the United States Air Force; Bigelow Aerospace; the U.S. Titan Launch Vehicle Team; the Inertial Upper Stage Team; the SpaceShipOne Team; the Ariane 4 Launch Team; the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle Teams; the NASA/Industry Galileo Space Probe Team; the men and women of United States Space Command and its component organizations; the Hubble Space Telescope Team; Sea Launch; NASA-Boeing International Space Station Team; Gen. Thomas S. Moorman, Jr., USAF (Retired); Capt. James A Lovell, Jr., USN (Retired); the American Astronautical Society; Air University; and the Hubble Space Telescope Repair Mission.

To Submit Nominations
Submit nominations by Oct. 31, 2010, to [email protected], and include why the nominee should be considered and your own contact information.